Meyer Shank Racing Prepared for Indianapolis 500
Meyer Shank Racing Prepared for Indianapolis 500
2018 marks the second Indianapolis 500 entry for the team
Indianapolis, Ind. (14 May 2018) – With the 102nd running of the Indianapolis 500 presented by Penngrade Motor Oil just two weeks away, Meyer Shank Racing (MSR) is prepared to head into the first week of official Verizon IndyCar Series practice at the yard of bricks in the No. 60 AutoNation / SiriusXM Honda with driver Jack Harvey.
After two IndyCar car starts this season, Meyer Shank Racing is primed to bring home a result this month in the huge event. The team saw its day end early at the IndyCar season opener in St. Petersburg after cutting a tire, but showed promising pace at Long Beach. Racing to the checkered flag with a lead-lap finish of 12th, the team is ready to take on the 2.5-mile circuit through the week of practice, into qualifying and then with a firm focus on the race on May 27th.
Last year, the team debuted in the race which saw Harvey start 27th only to suffer a DNF after getting collected in a lap 65 incident.
Meyer Shank Racing has returned to the track under new branding after Jim Meyer joined the effort, and is also armed with a technical partnership with Schmidt Peterson Motorsports (SPM) as the team grows its competition footprint.
“It’s awesome for both Michael (Shank) and I to come back to the place where we met and to have a better understanding of the lay of the land,” said Harvey of his return to the track. “Hopefully, having all that experience that we gained last year will help us this year.”
Harvey has a winning record at the track, claiming victory at the Freedom 100 in 2015 while racing for (SPM).
“The MSR and SPM partnership has been great with a very open relationship that is working really well,” said Harvey. “Having four cars means that we will test different options and learn collectively as a team which will hopefully help us to be better off.”
The No. 60 MSR machine will be sporting its pink chrome design in support of AutoNation’s “Drive Pink” campaign, joining the fight against breast cancer.
Also on the side of the IndyCar will be SiriusXM, a partner which has stood by the team during its first run at the 500 last year and moved into a key commercial partnership with MSR ahead of the 2018 season.
“It’s great to be back here at IMS,” said Mike Shank. “It’s such a special place and the atmosphere and fan support is next to none. We are looking forward to getting the week started. We found some good pace in Long Beach which really gives us a boost of confidence heading into the 500. This race is a beast of its own, so we will try to maximize all of the practice sessions so we can be fully prepared come race day.”
The team is hoping for favorable conditions through the week to make the most of the four days of running ahead of qualifying weekend. Practice for the 102nd running of the Indianapolis 500 will begin on Tuesday, May 15th from 11:00-6:00 p.m. ET.